'It's a dream': Joey Votto shares childhood photo after signing with Toronto Blue Jays
Joey Votto took to social media to show that dreams really do come true after he officially signed with his hometown team, the Toronto Blue Jays.
On Saturday, the Toronto franchise announced it has agreed to terms with Votto on a minor league contract, inviting the first-baseman to spring training this year. The terms of the deal were not revealed.
- Download our app to get local alerts on your device
- Get the latest local updates right to your inbox
The following day, Votto commemorated the news by sharing a throwback photo on Instagram from when he was an infant. In the photo, he can be seen wearing a bib with the words 'I’m a little Blue Jay’ sprawled on the front with the team’s logo underneath.
“I have wanted to play here since I was wearing a #BlueJays bib,” Votto said in a statement shared on X via the Blue Jays’ page.
The 40-year-old continued to express his long-running support for the Jays by highlighting pivotal moments throughout the team’s career, like the time when the Jays beat the Atlanta Braves on the road to secure the 1992 World Series Championship win and then winning the series again the year after when Joe Carter hit his walk-off home run against the Philadelphia Phillies.
“Those were the most exciting moments of my childhood,” Votto said. “The idea that I’m back with the opportunity, that I’m possibly going to be part of the team down the road that has championship aspirations … it’s a dream.”
The first-baseman from Toronto joins the Jays after a successful 17-year run with the Cincinnati Reds. He is a six-time National League All-Star, an NL MVP, a Hank Aaron Award winner and a Gold Glove-winning first baseman.
With files from The Canadian Press
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
Decoy bear used to catch man who illegally killed a grizzly, B.C. conservation officers say
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
OPP responds to apparent video of officer supporting anti-Trudeau government protestors
The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) says it's investigating an interaction between a uniformed officer and anti-Trudeau government protestors after a video circulated on social media.
An emergency slide falls off a Delta Air Lines plane, forcing pilots to return to JFK in New York
An emergency slide fell off a Delta Air Lines jetliner shortly after takeoff Friday from New York, and pilots who felt a vibration in the plane circled back to land safely at JFK Airport.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Loud boom in Hamilton caused by propane tank, police say
A loud explosion was heard across Hamilton on Friday after a propane tank was accidentally destroyed and detonated at a local scrap metal yard, police say.